The Urban Farmers: You can be a farmer, too

I have a neighbor whose prolific lemon tree drops fruit on the ground. And while I have an arrangement with my neighbor to pick up whatever I want, every summer most of the lemons drop and rot and it bugs me.

And I'm not the only one.

Four years ago, Siamack Sioshansi, his son Cameron Sioshansi and his son's college roommate, Xander Agasta founded a new non-profit, The Urban Farmers.

Originally from Zahedan, Iran, the elder Sioshansi grew up in a tiny village where everyone grew their own food. They had to. There were no stores.

"If you had a little or a lot of money, it did not matter. We all ate the same thing. By American standards, we were beyond poor. By the standard of how much money you need to live, we all had more money that we could use," he said.

In the United States Sioshansi became an attorney and worked at high tech companies. But he remembered that growing food or gleaning or trading food, worked.

"In today's environment, the poor are condemned to a life of struggle. (Some people) confuse economic lapses with ethical or moral lapses. This is not the way to building a better world for our children."

The Urban Farmers use the Internet, gathering volunteers and matching them to gleaning opportunities. It also provides models for food gathering and sharing, including donating to food banks, food pantries and church-based food pantries. The models include practical guidelines, software and support.

They are endeavoring to start programs in Solano County, after building a following in Contra Costa County and much of the North Bay.

"It's really just a matter of logistics, if you think about it," said Caitlin Sly of the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. "We work with Urban Farmers and set them up with our agencies and we track the poundage."

Recently, The Urban Farmers helped a widowed farmer's wife with over 100,000 lbs. of persimmons that would otherwise go to waste.

"We collected 50,000 pounds and more than 300 people showed up to pick the fruit. We had great equipment to make the work very easy," said

Sioshansi.

Of course, people can't eat persimmons three times a day, but it is a calorie/food contribution that otherwise would not have happened.

Urban Farmers Want People to get Cookin'

The Urban Farmers founder, Siamack Sioshansi feels strongly about providing people who use pantries support with cooking and recipes. To truly benefit from fresh produce, simple preparation and cooking skills are needed.

"Next to providing emergency relief food, it's probably the most significant step we can take to help the poor. Good eating requires cooking skills. And one of the best ways to save (or make you money go further) is to cook."

The folks at Urban Farmers know that Solano County is full of small orchards and private gardens. If owners knew of a way to funnel excess to those who need it, they would, Sioshansi feels.

That's why they make is easy to register even a single tree. Or maybe you plant tomatoes every year and one summer they go crazy. After you bring a bag to the office for your co-workers, what do you do with all the rest? Urban Farmers would like you to check out their webpage to figure out how to best donate and volunteer, and volunteer food.

"Ten years ago, you had one community that maybe included your family, your street, and your church. These days, with the Internet, people have five or even ten different communities that they can track and participate in actively," said Sioshansi.

Citing the old adage that 20 percent of volunteers usually do 80 percent of the work, Sioshansi feels that is changing also. Each person, by contributing even a half-day of work can feed hungry people.

The Urban Farmers has a pool of over 1,300 volunteers. Each volunteer serves about 3 hours a year. They respond to email alerts, picking an event that is convenient or sounds interesting. At the end of the day they have made a positive contribution in the community. The non-profit has no office, no staff, only a 16-member board who each contribute up to 15 hours a month to organize events and register trees. Their operating revenues are generated by members who choose pledge $50 a year.

"We don't want to build a mammoth central thingy that costs money," said Sioshansi who views hunger as a problem that has been with us since Biblical times. His vision is very simple. He is confident that volunteers can help redistribute food that would otherwise be wasted.

"We have software, free, that will register and send e-mails. We have relationship software, free. We have insurance and equipment volunteers can use. We are willing to share to help people get started," he said.

The Urban Farmer

The Urban Farmers is a grassroots, all-volunteer, 501(c) 3 non-profit organization located in the East Bay of San Francisco. It is our goal to deliver solutions that address the needs of the people and the planet. They harvest backyard fruit for the needy (and along the way do a few other related things like plant and maintain fruit trees) with a focus on hunger relief. They envision fresh, local, healthy food for all.